This is something that I touched base on in prior blog posts but, I feel that I need to expand on this topic a little more. DRINKING and DRIVING…
Prior to my accident I liked to party. I know, hard to believe right? My parents are saints for dealing with everything I put them through… Not to mention the 3-life flight rides I had the opportunity to go on, all because of dumb choices! They always said to me “Zac don’t do anything stupid tonight and be smart”, I always got this talk prior to leaving my house. Somehow my parents always knew what I was doing so I could rarely get away with a lie. Well, sometimes I could convince them to let me stay at a buddy’s house, but WE WOULD NOT LEAVE I promised, that buddy’s house I was supposed to stay at told his parents he was staying at mine… See where I am going with this? We played the system and would go party most of the night then usually sleep in my truck. My parents raised me right, but I was a teenager thinking that I was tough shit and that rules didn’t apply to me. Believe it or not 90% of the time I ended up telling on myself and getting in trouble anyway….
We all know that feeling of freedom when you finally get your drivers license, you feel like you are on top of the world! Then finally that one night your parents let you drive to your buddy’s party because they are finally starting to trust you. But everyone is drinking… One drink won’t hurt right? Wrong, usually that one drink turns into 6 in no time, then you jump in your vehicle and drive your friends home. Most of us have done this and gotten away with it quite a few times, but luck was on your side and sooner or later that luck will run out- trust me.
I thought I was invincible and nothing could happen to me. I know most of you guys reading this have said to yourself one time or another “that won’t happen to me”... I sure know I have said this phrase more than once! Yes, I drank and drove before I am not going to sit here and lie to you. Every time I did, I was lucky, I now know that. But why do we do it to ourselves? You wake up the next morning wondering how you got home, what fun is that? Why not alternate friends to DD? I know its hard to do when you are teenagers, usually the DD is the one dancing on the table at midnight. It’s the truth… In all seriousness though, a DD could save your life. Call your parents- yes, they may be a little mad at first that you’re 17 and your drunk, but you made it home safe. My parents always told me to call for a ride anytime and at times I did, other times I would take that huge risk of driving. Kids one bad decision can cost you a whole lot more than just a jail cell. Think about that.
Parents… you can honestly only do so much…. Kids drink underage it’s a fact and you are not going to stop it, but you can educate them on it. That one time they get freedom the choice is theirs and that is why I decided to finally tell my story in hopes to help teenagers realize you are not untouchable.
Would you want to be at the peak of your teen years and literally having someone feed you because you can’t move your arms? Or wait, 19 years old and you have to have someone shower you? It can happen to you or even worse.. Some get LUCKY and make it through life dodging all the “bullets”, others get to take the hard-bumpy road such as myself, but I could not even be here to tell this story. I came to realize I am here for a reason and that reason is to help others.
I just wish that one person would listen to my words when I say that your life can turn upside down in a second. I always thought this was complete bullshit, I am to smart to do something stupid or that stupid ass phrase “I am a good drunk driver”.. No, you are a LUCKY DRUNK DRIVER! You are lucky that you didn’t cross that center line and hit a car head on like we did. When something like my situation happened, I chose to get in the vehicle that day, we were all drinking and should not have left from where we were, but we did. That day is burned into my mind for the rest of my life and this wheelchair will be with me the rest of my life. Do you want that?..
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